Law Society relegates BPP from 'excellent' to 'very good'

BPP Law School's London branch has lost its 'excellent' rating following the latest round of visits by the Law Society.

The exclusive provider to the five-strong City LPC consortium comprising FreshfieldsBruckhaus Deringer, Herbert Smith, Lovells, Norton Rose and Slaughter and May was informed of its downgrading to 'very good' last month.

BPP's London branch was last audited in May 2003, when it was rated 'excellent'. The school's Leeds outpost,which opened last year, was rated 'very good' in November 2004. BPP's newest branch in Manchester has yet to be audited by the Law Society.

BPP chief executive Peter Crisp confirmed the downgrading. He said: "We were very surprised and are obviously very disappointed. We think the school has improved over the last two years and our clients think it's fantastic."

Meanwhile,asfirst reported by The Lawyer (10 October), the Law Society has overhauled its law school grading system.

Under the new system, introduced at the beginning of this month, law schools will be assessed and graded in six areas: teaching and learning the curriculum; assessment; students and their support;learningand resources; leadership and management; and quality assurance and enhancement.